1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to decorative resin products and processes, for use in architectural design.
2. Background and Relevant Art
Recent architectural designs have focused on decorative panels, such as glass or synthetic resin products, which can be used as decorative windows, and as partitions in offices and homes. In particular, decorative synthetic resin panels are now particularly popular compared with decorative glass panels since decorative resin panels can be manufactured to be more resilient, and to have the same appearance as glass, but with less cost. Furthermore, decorative resin panels (also sometimes referred to as “laminate panels”, “laminate materials”, or “laminates”) have a fairly wide utility since they can be formed to include a wide variety of artistic colors and images.
Present resin materials generally used for creating decorative resin panels comprise polyvinyl chloride, acrylic, poly(methylmethacrylate) or “PMMA”, poly(ethylene-co-cyclohexane 1,4-dimethanol terephthalate) or “PETG”, as well as related polycarbonates. While each of the aforementioned resin materials can serve as an appropriate glass substitute, each resin material varies in physical properties from one material to the next. For example, polycarbonates, PETG, and PMMA are generally received for use in solid sheet form (i.e., extruded). An extruded sheet is generally a solid preformed sheet, such as a solid 4′×8′ PETG sheet (alternatively, 3′×5′ sheet, 6′×10′ sheet, etc.), which ultimately can form a surface of a decorative resin panel when the panel is in final form. Since extruded PETG sheets provide better structural rigidity at less cost than other similar resin materials, PETG sheets are particularly popular.
One advantage of extruded resin materials, such as extruded PETG, is that multiple extruded sheets can be combined in one or more ways to create a decorative panel having one or more textures or colors. For example, a decorative panel can be created by forming two or more extruded PETG sheets about a two-dimensional colored material, such as a colored or textured vinyl sheet, fabric, or artistically-designed paper. When the decorative panel is properly formed, the image layer takes on the visual properties of the embedded two-dimensional material. Decorative panels using two-dimensional materials can be made fairly easily using conventional manufacturing processes.
A decorative panel can also be created by forming two or more extruded sheets about one or more three-dimensional embedded materials, such as thatch reed, bamboo, crushed rocks, and the like. When the decorative panel is properly formed, one or more of the three-dimensional objects can be seen through the clear (or translucent) resin materials, such that the materials appear to maintain a three-dimensional natural form while suspended in air. Such panels, having three-dimensional materials embedded inside, are typically much more complicated to make.
There may still be other ways of implementing three-dimensional artistic effects in decorative resin panels, albeit without embedding three-dimensional materials. For example, a decorative panel with three-dimensional effects might be manufactured by removing material to form one or more cavities inside the resin material. Alternatively, visually appealing three-dimensional effects might be made in a decorative resin panel by overlapping artistically-designed two-dimensional shapes. Unfortunately, simply removing material does not necessarily require artistic effort, does not lend itself to specific coloration or pattern techniques, and can ultimately have a negative effect on the strength of the decorative resin panel.
By contrast, overlapping successive two-dimensional images would be difficult in terms of cost and quality using present manufacturing techniques. For example, the typical artist's labor for creating a single cutout pattern in one image layer would be relatively high. Of course, the cost of combining several cutout patterns in several image layers would be still higher, and would make the decorative panel difficult to justify on a mass-production scale.
Cost concerns such as these would still be only some of the problems inherent in manufacturing multiple image layers together into a decorative resin product. For example, air bubbles, which are known to form between two or more extruded sheets in a single image layer, can present significant problems in a mass-production process. If the air bubbles are not removed, the air bubbles can be seen through the clear resin product. In other cases, the air bubbles can create reservoirs (also sometimes referred to as “lakes”) on the surface of the decorative resin panel, where the reservoirs appear as imperfections to an observer. Unfortunately, placing multiple image layers together compounds the air bubble problem, such that removing air bubbles from multiple image layers would become more complex.
Despite these concerns, there is nevertheless a need in the art for new and appealing types of artistic, decorative resin products. In particular, an advantage in the art can be realized with artistic, decorative resin panels that can provide a three-dimensional effect, and can be efficiently made at a relatively low cost.